Aucklanders with access to the rail network will now have a quick and convenient trip to the airport, Transport Minister Michael Wood and Auckland Mayor Phil Goff said during the official opening of the new Puhinui Interchange.
The new interchange links the rail platform with a new bus area via a new elevated forecourt, making it easy to transfer. It also includes new lighting, public toilets, drop off zones, better shelter, along with improved facilities and access for cyclists and pedestrians.
“Thanks to the SH20B upgrades completed earlier this year, the travel time between Puhinui Station and the airport on the AirportLink electric bus will only be around 10 minutes,” Michael Wood said. “This will also help travellers avoid pre-flight congestion as air travel picks up.”
“The interchange has been future proofed for future rail upgrades, including space for additional platforms, and for the Airport to Botany Rapid Transit project, which will add a bus rapid transit bridge to better connect East Auckland with good public transport,” Michael Wood said.
For travellers and for the tens of thousands who work at the airport and the business precinct around it, it ensures people can safely use public transport in a convenient manner and avoid the peak-hour build-up of road traffic.
As the trains and buses are electric it provides emissions-free travel to achieve New Zealand’s climate change objectives.
The Interchange will open to the public on Monday 26 July 2021.
Photo supplied. (Artist’s impression of the the Puhinui Interchange).
